Social Studies

Social Studies Department

Teachers: Frederick Coscia, Sarah Maguire, Ben Plavilacharuvil, Winston Heywood, 
                          Linda Butkowski

All students are required to complete four years of Social Studies. This includes two years of Global Studies and one year of United States History and Government. The Regents exam in Global Studies is taken at the end of the sophomore year and the Regents exam in United States History and Government is taken in June of the junior year.


Global Studies I:  This is an introductory course, coupled with Global II, which covers geography and history from the beginning of culture to the Age of Absolutism in Europe. Topics specifically covered are as follows: the formation of societies and the beginnings of culture; the early civilizations along the Nile river, Mesopotamia, in China and along the Indus River; the classical civilizations of Greece, Rome, Mauryan, China and Gupta; the rise and spread of ideological systems (Animism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Chinese Philosophies, Judaism, Christianity); the growth and demise of the great empires such as the Roman and Han Dynasties; the Tang and Song Dynasties; growth of overland (Silk Road) and other maritime trade routes; the spread of Islam; the Byzantine Empire; Europe in the Middle Ages; and the Crusades. This course does not culminate in a Regents examination.

Global Studies II:  This course focuses on global interactions. The following topics are covered in detail: feudalism in East Asia and Japan; early forms of global trade interactions; the impact of Mongols; the growth and demise of the African Kingdoms; the end of the Middle Ages; the growth of Meso-American Empires (Olmec, Mayan, Aztec, Incan); the Ming Dynasty; the rise of the Ottoman Empire; the growth of the Nation State; the expansion of Europe into Asia, the Americas and Africa and global absolutism. Although this course does not culminate in a Regents examination, the combined information learned in Global I and II do make up the first half of the material on the Social Studies Regents examination.

Global Studies III:  This course spans the history of the globe from the Age of Exploration and the scientific revolution to the end of World War II. It explores a plethora of historical themes that span countries and continents such as the "Age of Revolution", nationalism, reform, imperialism (European colonies in Latin America, Asia and Africa); independence movements in Latin America and totalitarianism. Politics, global ideologies as well as economic theories and practices of each period are examined in great detail. Also covered are the causes and effects of World War I and the rise of World War II.

Global Studies IV:  This course begins with a review of World War II and continues to modern time, examining the impact of World War II on global politics, economics and global ideologies. The Cold War frames much of this course, which leads at the end to an in-depth study of its downfall and the impact of globalization as well as other contemporary issues such as AIDS, terrorism and nuclear proliferation.

US History I and II:  These courses examine American history from its discovery by Europeans in the 15th century to the end of World War II. Specific topics covered are as follows: the forces that shaped the building of the United States - from explorers and the Puritans to slavery and the dawn of modern capitalism. Also explored in detail are the changes to American society and the impact of America on the world. These courses culminate in a Regents examination.

Economics:  The Economics course is a senior level course. It demands of students a variety of high level intellectual skills used to demonstrate how the United States and other societies develop economic systems and allocate scare resources. This course defines and applies basic economic concepts to topics such as: supply and demand; opportunity cost; production; resources; money and banking; economic growth; markets; competition and world economic systems. The course also investigates financial strategies that students will utilize in their private lives such as: checking writing; personal bank accounts; the responsible use of credit cards; all forms of insurance; social security and identity theft.